Gov. Maura Healey is responding to a federal probe into Medicaid fraud in Massachusetts as Tuesday marks the deadline for her to turn over information requested by the House Energy & Commerce Committee, claiming MassHealth has “strong program integrity,” while also dismissing Vice President JD Vance’s new role as chief of the newly-created Fraud Task Force.

“I know as the former attorney general, having overseen a Medicaid fraud unit, and now as governor, that the MassHealth program has strong public program integrity operations as does DTA and the other agencies,” Healey said when asked by the Herald if her office has turned over the information requested by the committee. “So that’s important. I continue to fund them, continue to support them, and we need to because the job is to maximize and ensure the best and appropriate use of every taxpayer dollar.”

Healey’s words come nearly two weeks after the committee sent her a letter related to “concerning” reports of Medicaid fraud in Massachusetts as the feds begin probing states across the country after hundreds of millions of dollars in fraud has been uncovered in Minnesota.

It also comes just a day after President Trump signed an Executive Order officially establishing his new Fraud Task Force and naming Vance its chair.

“I believe that they have an opportunity to do something so good for our country. People talk about balancing budgets. You can’t balance a budget when people are stealing $19 billion dollars,” Trump said while signing the executive order.

“If we found half of the fraud that’s taking place in this country, and I think you have a chance of doing that, we would have much more than a balanced budget. That’s the kind of numbers you’re talking about,” he said.

Healey was also asked by the Herald if she would work with Vance and the task force. The governor did not answer if she would work alongside him.

“I thought he was vice president,” Healey said before moving onto the next question with a chuckle.

With Vance heading the task force, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Andrew Ferguson will serve as vice chairman, and the assistant to the president for homeland security serving as senior advisor as an executive director will manage daily operations, according to a fact sheet released by the White House. Relevant cabinet secretaries and heads of government agencies will serve as task force members.

In its letter, the committee cited the vast amount of federal funds lost to waste, fraud and abuse in Minnesota through public benefits and companies offering services that receive federal funding through programs including Medicaid, like daycares, autism care services, non-emergency medical transport and more. Now the feds are looking into each state’s Medicaid program to ensure federal tax dollars are not going towards fraud, waste and abuse (FWA).

“Recent reports and law enforcement actions have exposed unprecedented levels of Medicaid fraud in the State of Minnesota and other states. The magnitude of the fraud demands states proactively address FWA in Medicaid programs. The swath of criminal schemes coming to light in Minnesota include overbilling, falsifying records, identity theft, and phantom claims in Medicaid social service and health programs for the elderly and disabled, children with autism, people struggling with substance use disorders, and homelessness,” the committee said in its letter to Healey.

“The Committee is concerned that your state’s Medicaid programs may be similarly vulnerable to FWA that harms Medicaid enrollees, legitimate providers, and taxpayers,” it said.

When it comes to Massachusetts, the committee pointed to recent fraud investigations and convictions related to MassHealth, including the February indictment of an individual on Non-Emergency Medical Transport (NEMT) fraud and money laundering for allegedly billing MassHealth over $770,000 for nearly 17,000 rides purportedly for patients seeking opioid addiction treatment. That case uncovered an additional 100 rides billed to patients who were dead at the time of the documented ride.

The committee also highlighted a 2025 case out of Worcester, in which another NEMT-company and its proprietor were indicted for allegedly billing over $3 million in medical transport services that were not provided.

The committee requested Healey provide it with written responses and supporting documents to numerous inquiries regarding the state’s MassHealth/Medicaid program by March 17, including any actions being taken to identify and assess fraud risk; all audits related to fraud, waste and abuse in the state’s Medicaid programs from 2021 to present day; any program integrity measures that are currently in place to prevent fraud, waste and abuse; screening requirements for MassHealth/Medicaid vendors in Massachusetts, and more.

The letter came just a week before state Auditor Diana DiZoglio’s office uncovered another $1.7 million in MassHealth/Medicaid fraud, specifically found in a probe of the first two quarters of fiscal year 2026, which ran from July 1 to Dec. 31, 2025.

It also comes as DiZoglio and the U.S. attorney’s office has uncovered millions of dollars in Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) fraud in Massachusetts and after the Herald detailed a whistleblower’s claims of “rampant” fraud and lax measures to combat it within the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA).

Massachusetts Medicaid (MassHealth) spending totaled over $26 billion, which included $14.7 billion in federal funding, in Fiscal Year 2024 that covered over 1.6 million people. According to Healey’s 2026 budget, MassHealth spending is expected to increase 12.6% in fiscal year 2026.

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